Friday

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said she intended no pun, but that it accurately captured her feelings.

"My heart breaks for this 'heartbeat' bill," the leader of U.S. House Democrats said of Ohio's pending law — now under challenge in court — to forbid abortions once a fetal heartbeat can be detected.

"It's very, very sad," she told the editorial board of The Dispatch during a 75-minute interview on Friday prior to speaking before about 1,200 people at the Ohio Democratic Party Legacy Dinner fundraiser at the Greater Columbus Convention Center.

"Many people don't even know they are expecting at that point," Pelosi said of when a fetal heartbeat can first be detected, generally around six weeks, and which opponents said will eliminate 90 percent of abortions. "And, no exception for rape or incest?"

>> VIDEO: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi discusses Ohio's heartbeat bill

The increasing number of laws to restrict abortion passed by Republican-ruled legislatures and governors around the country, including in Ohio, "is disrespectful to women" and targeted at overturning the 1973 U.S. Supreme Court ruling legalizing abortion, she said.

"I think Roe v Wade is in a very dangerous situation," Pelosi said. "I wouldn't trust any of this in the hands of the courts the president has appointed," she said of Republican Donald Trump's appointment of conservative jurists.

Pelosi called abortion a "tragedy," saying she respects the position of those who oppose abortion, including members of her own Catholic Italian family. "Most of my family is pro-life, but that is not my point of view. I think they would like me to be quieter about it all."

The House speaker also hopes that an order issued by a three-judge U.S. District Court panel in Cincinnati ordering the state to produce a new congressional map will stand. Finding Ohio's map unconstitutionally gerrymandered to benefit Republicans, the judges ordered the legislature to come up with a new 2020 map by June 14. The state is seeking a stay of the order from the U.S. Supreme Court.

"Hopefully it will be soon and it will be fair ... just have it be objective, not political in any way," Pelosi said. "At least people will be choosing their politicians rather than the politicians choosing their people. That's just not right, whether it benefits Democrats or not."

Pelosi counseled patience for those lobbying for impeachment of Trump in the wake of the Mueller report that presented a potential case, but made no call, on whether he obstructed justice in attempting to derail the investigation. The Trump administration will not turn over the unredacted report or other information and has said it will not honor House subpoenas for testimony.

"There's a lot of pressure on me to impeach ... it's a very, very divisive thing to do and it's not something you do politically," but on the basis of facts, the speaker said.

Pelosi said she believes House Democrats "are on the right course" in building a case for the courts for the legal fight to come that Trump and his team are illegally resisting congressional oversight.

"The White House did something highly unregular, even for them ... they put out a letter saying, 'You ain't got no rights to do anything. You can't ask us for anything,'" she said. "It's only about the executive branch and we can't let that stand ... we can't let them say, 'You can't do oversight.'"

The speaker suggested the House could turn to impeachment proceedings to force loose records and testimony from the White House. "Now you may not impeach, but it is a legitimate reason to ask for the information and that is something they cannot, and a court cannot deny."

Pelosi said that, "Every day, the president indicts himself, every day he commits practically almost an impeachable offense. And, he's taunting, because he wants to be impeached. That's the grist of the mill for his base. I would like that we don't have to go there."

The House is working to address health care and prescription costs, worker pay and other issues, Pelosi said, but claimed that the Republican-controlled Senate is standing in the way. "Stay tuned, because we'll see what the Senate will take. (Majority Leader) Mitch McConnell says he’s the grim reaper, he’s going to kill everything that comes over from the House."

The speaker discounts speculation that Democrats will divert time and money from Ohio in next year's presidential election given Trump's solid win in 2016 and the strength he enjoys in the state. "Any party that would overlook Ohio does so at its peril," she said.

In her remarks at the dinner — at which U.S. Rep. Joyce Beatty, D-Columbus, received the party's Legacy Award — Pelosi added: "No Democrats would ever say we are not going to fight it out in Ohio … we’re prepared to turn Ohio blue."

In a statement, Ohio Republican Party spokesman Evan Machan said of Pelosi's visit: "Nancy Pelosi is the symbol of the dysfunction that has plagued Washington for years. It is no surprise that the Ohio Democratic Party supports this. She has tried to block President Trump's pro-growth agenda at every turn. Her California views and progressive policies have no place in Ohio. Ohioans know that under President Trump's booming economy we have seen over 4.6 million jobs created, record low unemployment and rising wages."

rludlow@dispatch.com

@RandyLudlow

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